


The Gem Cesarl: Book Three

by AmethystCesarl



Category: Steven Universe (Cartoon)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, F/F
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-09-21
Updated: 2019-09-21
Packaged: 2020-10-10 01:14:43
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Major Character Death
Chapters: 6
Words: 5,036
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/20519543
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/AmethystCesarl/pseuds/AmethystCesarl
Summary: It appears The Crystal Gems are at odds with their Homeworld once again as a dumbfounded, gemless Amethyst recovers from an accident no one including herself thought she could ever come back from. Earth has become its most vulnerable without the protection of their mysterious alien warriors and Yellow Diamond's Pearl isn't backing down from an opportunity to take it upon herself to finish what the incompetent Pink Diamond has started. On her most epic journey, Amethyst must piece back together her shattered memories, rebel against everything holding her back, and discover what it really means to love in order for her to save her home from global devastation.





	1. Awakening

**Author's Note:**

> This is the third and final installment of The Gem Cesarl. I honestly didn't think I would actually go along with my word in tying all the loose ends like this, but here it is. The true, complete version will be exclusive to this website and platform becuase in the conclusion of this trilogy that a lot of people liked so much, I'm not holding anymore punches. Some of these chapters will push the envelope in ways that SU Amino would NEVER allow. I have a clear picture of how this should end, so hopefully, you will leave just as satisfied when you are done reading it.
> 
> This is the beginning of the arc titled  
**SEVERAL MONTHS LATER**
> 
> Description of arc: After waking up and recovering from the fountain incident, Amethyst realizes the consequences of her disappearance.

Did I die? What happened to me? All that I could remember was--being entangled in vines--underwater--with someone. My chest is aching and my stomache growls as I cough a few times. I start to open my eyes as one void in my perception passes into another.

I wiggle my fingers and my toes, allowing them to help me get a good feel of my current surroundings. I feel something--light and--soft. Bedsheets? I can't tell considering the fact that I'm in complete and utter darkness right now.

I listen to my toes as they slip out of the bedsheet. I sit up--and I bulge my eyes as I yelp. I immediately press a hand to my back as something rings in my concious. I grunt as the back of my head slams into a pillow. It's obvious now that I'm on a bed. 

But where am I exactly? I squint my eyes shut for a moment as I slide my arms out from under the sheet, resting them on top. My hands aren't bare, but concealed with gloves. They made a different sound when I moved them. A slightly louder sound.

I press the gloves down on the bed to give myself leverage to sit up. "Ah!" I clench my teeth as I endure the searing pain from my upper back. My chest doesn't feel any better. I involuntarily hold my breath as glass pierces it. I exhale as I press a gloved hand to my chest.

I allow the sheet to drop, exposing my upper body. I can't tell if I'm still wearing my green ripped tank or not, but there is one thing that I can reluctantly take note of. The big, bulky gem that was embedded in my chest has been reduced to shards. Yet somehow, I'm still here.

Is this the place that Gems would normally go when they are shattered? If that's the case, then why are small shards of glass still on my chest, poking at every corner they can get to? I blink and I bend my head down as I reach down beneath the covers.

Unlike my upper body, my lower half seems to be covered by clothing of some sort. I reach down further--pants. My feet are bare, but my hands aren't. I can assume that I'm half naked in the flesh right now. I can't really move that much, so I have no other choice but to stay put until-!

A crevice of light enters the void as something creaks ahead of me. I shield my eyes, turning my head a degree to my right. The light gradually grows until the whole void has been diminished. "Amethyst?" A deep, thick voice speaks out. "You're--awake?"

I slowly bring my head back up from my left arm as a familiar face surfaces into my vision. The face has itself gaping with widening eyes. I bring my arm back down to my side as I gaze at the face. "Amethyst?" The face raises an eyebrow as it takes a step forward, blocking the light for a moment.

My forehead starts pounding as a body reveals itself. I can see an apron, pants, some boots. The body's arms aren't covered, allowing it to show off its muscular build. Who does this body belong to? I should know this, but I--don't remember for some reason.

A flame illuminates the room, revealing a glimpse of the body's bare back. The body's shoulders drop as it sighs. "I don't know what has happened to you, but one thing is for certain." The body passes me as it steps away towards the door. 

The body closes it, leaving the orange light to cover the entire room. "You left--and you returned--dead." The body turns around to face me. "Lapis brought you back to us and she cried over your body for--I don't know how many hours." Lapis. That name. It sounds familiar to me. 

The body continues speaking. "Your gem was shattered--at Rose's Fountain. Lapis claims she didn't attempt to break you, but we don't know what to believe anymore--about all of this." The body folds its arms as it scoffs. "She didn't want you to be buried unlike how any normal human would, so we kept you here--underground."

The body presses its left hand to the dirt wall. "While you were gone, something changed. Something--beyond anything that you can imagine." I attempt to speak out, recognizing that I am feminine--along with the body talking to me. "What happened?"


	2. Candlesticks

The body of the figure intruding on my privacy rests its butt down on the bed, causing the matress to hiss for a moment. The face turns to lock its fierce eyes on mine as the flame from the candlestick reflects off them. "Several months ago, after your burial, the barn was in ruins. Tension was beyond handling."

Does this have something to do with that name she mentioned? What was it again? Lappy? "Yellow's Pearl came a few days later." She pauses for a moment to swallow as I raise an eyebrow. "She evicted us--and she wanted the barn for some reason--but I don't know what."

I guess it's safe to assume Yellow's Pearl is a bad guy--or girl? I have like a lifetime that I need to recollect everything right now. All I'm getting though, is news about what's happening now. "She apparently took reign over Beach City too. That's what I heard from rumors anyway."

The body casts her eyes down on the bedsheet with her right hand pressing down against it. "So--we're here now--and we have nowhere else to hide." Okay okay. I think it's about time I start asking her some questions other than "What happened"? "Dude, I don't get whatever the heck you are saying. Can you start from the beginning?"

The body shifts back a bit from me, jolting as the mattress hisses once more. Her eyes blink as they bulge, her frown turning frownier. "Wh-what?" Her eyebrow raises as she gawks from my question. "How do you...?!" 

The body clenches her teeth as they mix with her grimace. "HOW DO YOU NOT REMEMBER EVERYTHING THAT HAS HAPPENED?! YOU'RE THE ONE WHO STARTED IT ALL!" She breathes heavily as her chest heaves behind her apron. 

I bring the sheets up to my neck as my eyes droop. "I don't know. I don't even remember what your name was-!" She thrusts her body into me as she grips my arms, forcing me to drop the rim of the sheet. "IT'S BISMUTH, AMETHYST!" 

Bismuth's steaming breath blocks the scent of my surroundings as she brings herself even closer to me. "WHAT DID LAPIS DO TO YOU...AT THE FOUNTAIN?!" My lips quiver as I turn my head away from her towards the candlestick. I was at "the fountain" with a person named Lapis. Somehow, vines were latching onto me. Lapis is being accused for that happening. I don't know enough to determine whether she is innocent or guilty--but she was involved.

Bismuth pulls away from me a bit, allowing me to regain some of my space as her breathing slows, lowering in volume. "What did she do?" Her voice shakes as she turns away from me back to the candlestick. "You come back after THIS long--only to give us zip about nothing!"

Bismuth shudders as she embraces herself, bending her head down as she grits her teeth. "I don't understand why--Jasper had to sacrifice herself--or why Rose turned me down. I don't understand why you don't remember anything!" 

I stare at the flame on the candle as it starts to shrink. "I--I can't let them know about this! They will be devastated and they will be just as aggressive with each other than before!" I blink my eyes as the flame shrinks another couple centimeters. "Wait. Amethyst?"

I turn my head back to face her--smile? "Maybe I can jog your memory somehow." I raise an eyebrow, causing the smile on Bismuth's visage to falter. "Please. I need you to come with me. I don't know how you lost touch with your memories, but there could be a way to get you up to speed on all of this."

Bismuth turns away from me and she gets up from the bed before stepping up to the dresser where the dying flame of the candlestick resides. "Now obviously you can't go out into public the way you are now, but don't worry." She pulls open a thick drawer before reaching in to dig out a green ripped tank. 

"Nothing was lost during your recovery, clothes included. Your shirt is a bit ripped though." She tosses me the tank and I catch it the moment it hits my chest. "Your coat and shoes, on the other hand, are nowhere to be found. This is all you really need though." I pull the rim of the tank over my head and I grunt as I pull it down to my waist. 

I pat the tank on each side to make sure it's not loose as Bismuth takes the candlestick from the dresser. "Okay then. Let's go before this candle burns out. I swear, these are weaker than last week's. I knew I should've brought the lantern." 

I grunt, pushing myself off the bed to give it one last hiss. I take a deep breath--and I take my first step forward in a very long time with a new journey that awaits me--with the flame of the candle burning out from the stick.


	3. Lanterns

As I step past the threshold of my former tomb, the flame from the candle minimizes itself down to an orb. With one last breath--the orb vanishes as I listen to a door snap shut to my left. Soon to follow that would be the groaning from the user.

"Dang! The flame went out." Once again, there is a void in my perception. One that I can move around in with the utmost consciousness with a friend by my side. I'm assuming Bismuth is on my side since she wants to help me I guess.

Then again, how did I really lose consciousness of reality, exactly? I know that I'll find the answer to that in due time. Then I'm gonna make sure that lightning can't strike me down a second time. "Hey, Amethyst, try using your power." 

I raise my eyebrow as I shift my attention towards the speaker. "Uh, what power?" Do I really have a power that could help light the way out? If I did, well, it's not with me anymore I don't think. I'm not feeling it. I hear the latter facepalm as I bite my lip. "You know! The sparking and the zapping! You know, like, Pzzow! Pzzow! Zap! Zap!"

My right eye twitches as I bend my head down. "Uh, no?" Bismuth grumbles as she props her back against the wall. "Ugh! Why didn't I bring that lantern? And of all of the things that I needed the most! Why can't we just have a spare lantern or perhaps some more resources so we could afford--!"

Bismuth's rant starts to trail off in my head as a light ahead of me illuminates the dirt path with the light bouncing with vigor. The brightness gradually casts a shadow, projecting my form--and stature on the wall. "I swear, we wouldn't be in this mess had I brought along-!"

"THIS lantern?" I hear a rattling--followed by a shriek. I immediately lift my head up to look upon the blue visage of the intruder. The eyes are drooping though alert, the mouth being slightly indifferent. "Lapis! Don't...do that!" Lapis! That name! Why does it sound so familiar to me?

"Well, you did come down with nothing but a mere candlestick from storage. You know you should be using the lantern if you really wanted to go down to visit-!" Lapis drops the lantern from her hand as she gawks down at me. 

Lapis blinks her eyes, widening them with tears pouring out of them as the lantern clangs onto the dirt ground, luckily on its stand from the bottom. "You're--YOU'RE ALIVE!" She immediately kneels down, wrapping her arms around me. 

Huh? She must've been close to me to be acting this way towards my awakening. My arms stay put at their sides as I feel the cold, wet pressure from the palms of her hands. Her nose comes into contact with my hair as she gives it a slight whiff. 

Last but not least, her lips--most interesting of all--brush against my neck from within the tufts of my hair. Okay. She must've been REALLY close to me for that to happen. It's obvious that Lapis has nothing to hide from me especially her everlasting affection.

I hold my breath to resist moaning in front of Bismuth. Being the one standing out in the hall, she looks away as she presses a hand to her neck, her cheeks turning the faintest hue of dark blue. Lapis finally pulls away as my neck aches from the previous, somewhat pleasuring minute.

Lapis brings herself to eye level with me, her mouth gaping. She closes her eyes, her face gradually getting closer to mine. I can't decide whether or not to allow her to push things any further to mend her lost relations with me. I guess all I could do is--close my eyes as well and--coughing cuts the moment short.

Lapis and I jolt as we turn our attention back to whom we couldn't remember being in our presence just now. "Ahem! Uhm, couldn't you two do that--somewhere else--at a better time?" Lapis' cheeks heat inches from my face as I could feel the steam coming from her cold, wet skin.

Lapis abruptly turns away from me, standing up. She brushes off her white tank top and jeans. Lapis pants as she clasps her trembling fingers behind her back in front of me. Bismuth holds up the lantern as she looks around. "Okay, you came from--that way, right?" Lapis nods. "Uhm, yeah."

Lapis bends her head down as Bismuth proceeds down the path in the direction she came. We follow suit as she raises the lantern till it's in front of her face. Her boots crunch against the dirt path as she moves her head left--right--left--right--straight ahead down the straight and narrow corridor.

I stare at Lapis as she moves a degree slower in pace from Bismuth's. Her feet seeming to kick against the dirt every few steps she has taken. Behind her back, Lapis pulls her clasped hands away, extending out her right arm to me. With a moment's hesitation, I take her hand--and she clasps mine with hers.


	4. Wars

I can't stop looking at her. Whatever Lapis did to me back there, it's working--and I fear that she has intentions outside of what I've been used to in this reality. I honestly can't remember having that sort of thing with anyone to be honest. 

But I must have since she did have that sudden urge to make out with me right then and there--and I did too. Lapis' hand slightly loosens its grip as Bismuth speaks with her on some matters that I'm not yet aware of. "So, Lapis, did you receive any news from Beach City in the past few hours?"

Lapis shakes her head. "No. But even if I were to, Yellow's Pearl has the residence under maximum security. If any of our diplomats were to spill anything behind her back, it could compromise our plans to take back the area and our safety. 

"Next thing you know, there will Topazes at our doorstep and we will be finished. This is getting to be too risky, Bismuth." She raises her voice. "I mean, how much more of this do you really think we could we possibly take? Can't we just stay put and survive here without having to jeopardize our one and only safe haven left on this planet?!"

Bismuth doesn't make the slightest reaction, other than lifting her head up to stare into the abyss ahead of us. "Lapis, if we don't do anything, we will be caught anyway sooner or later. I'm not going down without a fight and neither are you or me or anybody else for that matter. 

"Not to mention, just giving up to a sociopathic Pearl would be pathetic to our reputation being that we are Crystal Gems and-!" Lapis stomps on the dirt, jerking me forward from the grip of her hand which strengthens once more. 

"Excuse me?! Not all of us are Crystal Gems here you know! And how can you say that about her! That Pearl is a threat beyond anything the Diamonds has ever deployed onto this planet! Oh if only Yellow Diamond could just see her now...torturing humans and taking conquest across the Earth! 

"It will only be a matter of time before it falls right back into the Diamonds' clutches just like it had been five thousand, seven-hundred fifty years ago back when-!" Bismuth stops in her tracks, whiping her body around towards Lapis. "I know, Lapis! That's why we have to act now while we still have the chance."

Lapis growls. "You don't get it, do you?! You can't win this time! You will never win against Homeworld! Pink Diamond may be gone, but they have only grown stronger because of that! They are still making weapons and they are advancing in their technology, training their military for another rebellion just like this!" 

Lapis heaves as she jabs a finger into Bismuth's apron. "And what have YOU been doing all this time?! Coddling the Earth instead of being in your Forge, preparing more weapons or structures for the next war?!" 

Bismuth's eyes bulge as she clenches her teeth. "I was bubbled away during the Gem War and just this year, I finally come back only to watch everything crumble all over again! Besides--Pearl, Garnet and Amethyst over here...!"

Bismuth thrusts a finger towards me. "Has been doing all of that! Don't go blaming all of this on me, Lapis! Besides, where were you?!" Lapis huffs. "In a mirror for about as long as you were in a bubble! I only came down here for a mission assigned by Blue Diamond! I didn't ask to be involved in any of this! Why did your leader bubble you away anyway?!"

"She found me too reckless actually doing my job! I created a weapon that could shatter even that of a Diamond and she turned it down!"  
"Well it's no wonder you all are so weak and pitiful! You see, none of this crap would be happening had Rose Quartz never came out of her hole to begin with! 

"She doesn't even understand what it means to actually be a leader! And if that is the best of what you had as one, your whole alliance has nothing more than low standards! That is why Homeworld won the war and that is why they hardly had any mercy to leave you all for dead like this! 

"So I suggest that you end this charade before you end up just like the rest of your army. Shattered and harvested! But hey, if that's what you want, then by all means, go right on ahead you crazy warmonger!" I hold my breath, resisting to scream as Lapis crushes my hand in her shaky grip.

Lapis storms off with me being carried along with her. Bismuth folds her arms as she scoffs. "You're the one whose crazy, you sadistic uppercrust!" Lapis doesn't stop or turn her head as her fist convulses. 

"Tell me I'm wrong when you find yourself in nothing but an overgrown mass of shards the next time I come across yours if I ever do come back to this planet." She tugs on my arm as I keep up with her in her rage. "Come on, Amethyst. We're going to go check out--and then we're leaving this planet for good."


	5. Deception

Lapis switches the gears in her feet as they stomp down on the dirt path in a pattern between intervals of about two seconds each. Her panting gradually transfers over to heaving as her grip on my arm tightens ever so slightly by the second.

A part of me knows that Lapis probably isn't thinking straight with her decision to leave but--maybe it's for the best. I mean, I don't remember a darn thing on what has happened to everyone. I don't even recognize the name Yellow's Pearl or Yellow as anything other than a color...that means fear.

Also, how does a Pearl--a PEARL?! They're weak I think. How did a Pearl manage to takeover Beach City? That place--it was my--no. That can't be right. There's something missing that I'm just not getting. It's time to get back up to speed on everything.

I lift my head up, daring to gaze upon her lustrous ocean blue hair, a part of her right eye in plain sight of mine. "Uhm, Lapis?" Lapis doesn't respond as she huffs, taking a right turn to make her way up a gentle sloping ramp with her eye merging with her hair in my perception.

I bite my lip and I exhale before I make a second attempt, this time, raising my voice a bit. "Lapis, why are we leaving?" Yeah, that's a good way to start off. "Amethyst, this isn't up for debate. I have seen Yellow's Pearl and she is getting closer and closer to finding us. I just can't--I won't let it happen again."

I raise an eyebrow. "Wait, what?" Lapis scoffs. "Come on, Amethyst! Don't pretend you don't know what happened to me all those long years ago!" Well I don't remember what has happened back then! I don't remember any of it! How did I even-! Wait! That's it! "Lapis, I-!"

I widen my eyes for a moment before closing my eyes to cough into a fist. I open them back up as I bring it back down to my side. "I don't remember--why I'm here again?" Lapis stops in her tracks halfway up the slope. 

Lapis allows me to join her side to witness a tear slipping through her eye. "Amethyst, several months ago, you were sent here--becuase you...!" She turns her head down towards me, holding her mouth shut with her hand convulsing with mine. She calms it down as she turns away from me to look back at the pathway ahead. "You came to the fountain."

"So, what happened at the fountain?" Lapis' hand trembles in my palm once more--but only for a couple seconds. "Amethyst, you were trying to help me heal my Gem--becuase you and I have always been really close to each other and we have known each other this whole time. More than anyone else."

Lapis's hand relaxes as she finally lets go of mine to fold her arms underneath her breast. "The fountain was a dangerous place to be in at the time and--we were drowning--and then you were shattered." Her voice cracks and she bites her lip for a moment.

"But somehow, and I'll never know why, you were still there with me--but you were unconscious and I saw--I saw a Ruby. She was trying to stab you and take you away from me. I fought her off--and she retreated. Much to my surprise, it was a friend of ours who was--apparently in cahoots with Yellow's Pearl.

"When I took you back to the barn, she was there. She goes by her code name in our rank, Eyeball--becuase she has one eye. Her gem is covering the other. This Gem isn't who she says she is--and she was still with us at the time, pretending as if nothing happened. But I know what she did. I had to bubble her away myself. I want you to promise me--that you won't go looking for her. Not once, not ever." 

I cast my eyes down for a moment before looking back up. "Uhm, Lapis? Why would I wanna go looking for someone who wants to kill me?" Lapis' face brightens up, smiling a bit. "I just--thought you were thinking about it. I know that this is a lot for you to take in, but understand that none of this is your fault. She was--trying to break us up."

Lapis turns back down to face me. "But you." She extends out her hand once more--and I take it. "You found your way back me. Don't worry. I'm not gonna let anything bad happen to you anymore." She smiles to the utmost extent, seemingly smirking as she resumes heading up the sloping dirt path.


	6. Steam

Lapis and I have been on a merciless trek for the past couple hours since we have ditched Bismuth from a heated debate. The tunnel is hardly illuminated by a dull red glow passing through the crevices of dirt beneath our feet in which we walk on.

My forehead sweats as my body takes in the moist climate with my feet starting to sear. I grimace as I turn back to face a stolid Lapis somehow not in the least bit phased by the atmosphere. I whimper for a moment as I cast my eyes back down on the ground.

I keep walking as my body screams in anguish with a desire to get cooped up in a cooler straight off in the nude. That's weird. The glow pulsates as it brightens within a matter of seconds. I must've been REALLY deep down within the Earth's crust during my recovery to have been able to witness this torture.

I close my eyes and I squint as I grip Lapis' hand, enduring the pain. Lapis doesn't bother to lock it in as she proceeds to hold my hand in a loose fashion--until she lets go. I open my eyes to see nothing but the abyss ahead. Lapis had to have stopped for another reason.

I turn to my side--then around. Lapis has her head bent down with more than just sweat streaming down her face. "You feel it, don't you? Beneath us?" I nod my head, playing mute for just a moment. "This is magma--in case you didn't get it. It's a substance used for forging weapons--and a means of total destruction."

I raise my eyebrow as Lapis shudders, embracing herself. "This--this...!" She collapses on her hands and knees with a grunt of surrender. "Lapis?!"  
She pants heavily as I immediately rush up to her, hearing the soles of my feet sizzle against the ground like the food on a stove.

I slap my hands on her shoulder--and she thrusts her head back up to reveal to me a sudden grimace. "This wasn't here when I was on my way to visit you." She presses her hands against the sides of her head as steam cuts clean through the wall to my right.

I gasp. "What the...!" I abruptly get up as Lapis coughs. "The dirt here can no longer sustain the burial ground!" I extend out my hand down towards Lapis and she lifts her head up. "Bismuth wanted you buried deep enough so that no one could harm you during your recovery, but...!"

More steam hisses at it cuts itself out off the wall nearby. It flushes into our surroundings as cough for a moment. "W-Wait a sec!" Lapis reaches out for my extended hand as I quickly draw it back to curl my fingers into fists, clenching my teeth. "What are you talking about? What do you mean I was buried deep enough so no one could harm me?"

Lapis' visage darkens as she gets up on her own. She lifts her head up as she clenches her teeth through bulging eyes. She raises a fist and she jabs at my cheek, knocking my vision into a blur. She grips my tank and she forces me against the wall. I pant as she jabs at my jaw.

My head rebounds off the wall and I collapse on my own hands and knees. I can hear more of the steam cutting into the dirt as Lapis squats down to meet me at eye level. I heave as I press a hand against my chest. "What--what are you doing?!"

Lapis, through drooping and narrowing eyes, immediately grips my tank and pulls me in for a brushing session from her lips. She forces me against the wall once more as she tightens her grip on my tank. She presses her face against my nose to plug in my nostrils.

My eyes bulge as Lapis attempts...to stop me from breathing--to suffocate me--to kill me in her grasp. N-no! I just got back! She can't bring me down like this again! I can't--I won't let her! I attempt to push her back from me only to have my arms restrained just the same.

Tears slip down my cheeks as I squint my eyes shut. Lapis--why? Why are you doing this? Why are you doing this to me? Why--why--why-!" I gasp for air only to breathe in the steam. The body that was up against me has been forced off from its goal. Did Lapis decide to spare me?

A shrill voice speaks out. "What is the meaning of this?!" I can't open my eyes for they're drowning in tears and I can hardly breathe as the hissing of the steam pierces my eardrums. I can hear the sparking of electricity and the crack of a whip. The one who came into this conflict is speaking again. "You will not...!" There is ringing in my ears. I can barely hear this dude. I mean, she's not a dude but--at this point--there is nothing to hear but silence.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This is the end of the arc titled  
**SEVERAL MONTHS LATER**
> 
> Next time, **THE REAL STINGER**


End file.
